Rapid flow-through fractionation of reed using formic acid and its further valorizations

We present an efficient method for the separation of reed into cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin fractions using a rapid flow-through fractionation (RFF) system with green formic acid. Fractionation was conducted at temperatures ranging from 130 to 170 °C for a short reaction time (20 min). The cellulose-rich pulp fraction exhibited a high cellulose recovery (85 wt%) and enhanced enzymatic digestibility (76 wt%) at 130 °C, outperforming state-of-the-art methods. The hemicellulose sugars dissolved in the effluent reached 77 wt% at 130 °C and were successfully converted to furfural with a yield of 55 mol% at 180 °C within 60 min, without the need for sugar purification or catalyst addition. The lignin fraction was recovered in a 75 wt% yield, with 80 % retention of the aryl ether linkages. Hydrogenolysis of the lignin at 250 °C in methanol for 3 h using Pd/C yielded a high amount of phenolic monomers (22.6 wt%). These results demonstrate that reed can be effectively fractionated using RFF with formic acid, and the resulting fractions can be further valorized into high-yield chemical products. This approach is readily transferable to other biomass feedstocks.